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A review by ladettem
The Murder of Graham Catton by Katie Lowe
5.0
**REVIEWED FOR NETGALLEY & BECAUSE I LOVE KATIE LOWE!✨**
Trigger Warnings:
Gaslighting, Domestic Abuse, Physical Abuse, Emotional Abuse, Violence, Blood, Mental Health Deterioration, PTSD, Drug Dependency (mentioned) Kidnapping, Death, Eating Disorders, Harassment/Bullying.
The Review:
I’m not being hyperbolic when I say that this is the Psychological Thriller I’ve been waiting for. I’ve read quite a few recently, which have felt inherently pedestrian, and I wondered if I’d gone off the genre as a whole; but Lowe’s writing is decadent in the way it teases at truths and lies. I often compare my reading experiences to rollercoasters (mainly because I enjoy the fast paced-ruthlessness nature of a rollercoaster read) however, Lowe is a master craftswoman at the slow-burn intrigue. What is the truth? Who murdered Graham Catton?
You have no idea how badly I want to tell you. But, you know, spoilers. What I can tell you is I really appreciated the singular perspective of Hannah Catton, our protagonist and potential murderess. (Although, not going to lie, every time a character said, ‘Hannah…’ in that way that suggests you’ve said or done something wrong, it was enough to make me sit up, like, ‘What?’ you know. What with Hannah being my name… anyway, I digress). Hannah Catton is a psychiatrist, with a doctorate that everyone seems to forget. She’s intelligent, she’s sensitive, and she’s a pathological liar. She lies to Dan, her long time partner, about where she’s going and who she is seeing. She lies to her daughter, Evie, who is growing up to look more and more like Graham (her father, who she barely remembers) and her colleagues.
Domestic Abuse is a sensitive subject, and needs to be handled with care, so what I appreciated RE: TMOGC was that Hannah is a strong, three dimensional character. She’s angry, sensible, considerate, compassionate, jealous; all the things which could make a killer. And whilst she is often mocked for her ‘doe-like’ expressions, she’s no waif. At no point to Lowe glamourise Hannah’s situation as a woman who ‘snapped’ (a phrase I loathe, btw). Each action has a transparent motivation which, whilst I might not agree with, does allow the audience to empathise.
And as far as the murder mystery elements of this narrative, I’ll go so far as to say: the evidence was all there. Even if I didn’t see the ending coming. And I’ll cross my fingers that I’ve not given away too much!
I loved this read. Much like the audience crammed around the Conviction Podcast, I sought time alone from the world to discover more of Graham Catton, the cruel double life he’d constructed for his family and his friends, and where Hannah Catton’s lies would lead her. It was thrilling (if you’ll excuse the pun) and totally vindicates my thoughts RE: The Furies, where I promised to get my hands on everything Katie Lowe ever produces.
Loved, Loved, Loved it. Five stars. Wouldn’t change a hair on this novel’s head.
Trigger Warnings:
Gaslighting, Domestic Abuse, Physical Abuse, Emotional Abuse, Violence, Blood, Mental Health Deterioration, PTSD, Drug Dependency (mentioned) Kidnapping, Death, Eating Disorders, Harassment/Bullying.
The Review:
I’m not being hyperbolic when I say that this is the Psychological Thriller I’ve been waiting for. I’ve read quite a few recently, which have felt inherently pedestrian, and I wondered if I’d gone off the genre as a whole; but Lowe’s writing is decadent in the way it teases at truths and lies. I often compare my reading experiences to rollercoasters (mainly because I enjoy the fast paced-ruthlessness nature of a rollercoaster read) however, Lowe is a master craftswoman at the slow-burn intrigue. What is the truth? Who murdered Graham Catton?
You have no idea how badly I want to tell you. But, you know, spoilers. What I can tell you is I really appreciated the singular perspective of Hannah Catton, our protagonist and potential murderess. (Although, not going to lie, every time a character said, ‘Hannah…’ in that way that suggests you’ve said or done something wrong, it was enough to make me sit up, like, ‘What?’ you know. What with Hannah being my name… anyway, I digress). Hannah Catton is a psychiatrist, with a doctorate that everyone seems to forget. She’s intelligent, she’s sensitive, and she’s a pathological liar. She lies to Dan, her long time partner, about where she’s going and who she is seeing. She lies to her daughter, Evie, who is growing up to look more and more like Graham (her father, who she barely remembers) and her colleagues.
Domestic Abuse is a sensitive subject, and needs to be handled with care, so what I appreciated RE: TMOGC was that Hannah is a strong, three dimensional character. She’s angry, sensible, considerate, compassionate, jealous; all the things which could make a killer. And whilst she is often mocked for her ‘doe-like’ expressions, she’s no waif. At no point to Lowe glamourise Hannah’s situation as a woman who ‘snapped’ (a phrase I loathe, btw). Each action has a transparent motivation which, whilst I might not agree with, does allow the audience to empathise.
And as far as the murder mystery elements of this narrative, I’ll go so far as to say: the evidence was all there. Even if I didn’t see the ending coming. And I’ll cross my fingers that I’ve not given away too much!
I loved this read. Much like the audience crammed around the Conviction Podcast, I sought time alone from the world to discover more of Graham Catton, the cruel double life he’d constructed for his family and his friends, and where Hannah Catton’s lies would lead her. It was thrilling (if you’ll excuse the pun) and totally vindicates my thoughts RE: The Furies, where I promised to get my hands on everything Katie Lowe ever produces.
Loved, Loved, Loved it. Five stars. Wouldn’t change a hair on this novel’s head.